After
by lalalala72
Summary: Nick and Jess for the remainder of season 2


Is it possible to make a _good_ mistake? Nick laid awake in his bed for the majority of the night (until 6:45 AM to be exact) pondering this question. In order for it to be a mistake, it has to be bad...right? Kissing Jess had been Nick's best mistake, as far as he can tell. Sure, it may have been dumb to kiss his best girl-friend when her boyfriend is about 20 feet away behind a single closed door. Maybe it will mess with the loft dynamic. He did sign the 'No Nail' clause when Jess had first moved in; He knew Schmidt and Winston were going to give him shit when they found out. Especially Schmidt.

Nick just wrapped his pillow around his head, silently screaming "What have I done?" a couple times over the course of the hours he's been in bed. He thought about calling Caroline. Or Julie. Even Angie, the girl that had left him in a cabin after confessing his like for her. At some point in the night, each had seemed like a good idea. He even had his phone in his hands, about to call each of them before he realized that's what the Old Nick would do. Pre-Trench Coat Nick. What a loser.

New Nick, as he was referring to himself after the kiss, acted on impulse for things that he really wanted. Not girls who broke his heart into 10 billion pieces without so much as an "I'm sorry". So, while he regretted the kiss (he realizes it's impossible to make a mistake without a little regret), he thinks it may also be the best thing he's ever done.

Nick heard Jess's door open and then a few moments later, the front door close. There was whispering, but nothing that he could make out clearly enough. He decided to get up now because, at 6:45, Winston wouldn't be home for 2 hours and Schmidt won't be awake for another hour. He knew that he and Jess had to talk and couldn't think of a better time to do it. Usually Nick wasn't one for confrontation. Normally he ignored it as long as he could. But, like he stated before, that was Old Nick. That stupid loser.

Nick walked out of his room just as Jess was walking back toward hers. The sight of him obviously startled her, as she stopped in her tracks and looked at Nick, giving him a chance to look at her. She looked sleepless, dark bags under her eyes, messy hair sticking up all over her head. She looked beautiful. She didn't say anything to him, just gave him a small smile and nod before walking past him to her room.

That's when Nick realized it is possible to make a good mistake.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

He decided that then wouldn't be a good time to talk. The obvious lack of sleep and the way that she looks at him with her big, blue eyes could cause a repeat of the kiss, which is exactly what he's trying to avoid. However, he wasn't going to give up on her. He went back to his room for a few hours, finally being able to get a little bit of sleep after seeing Jess. At noon, he was awoken by Schmidt and Winston's bickering about...did it matter? He sat up and ran a hand through his hair before making his way out of his room.

As fate would have it, Jess was leaving her room at the same time he was leaving his. Clad in work-out gear, she gave him a tiny, awkward smile. "We've got to stop meeting like this." She said, looking anywhere but his eyes.

"Can we talk?" He whispered.

She didn't reply, just started running away from the situation. Literally. She sprinted into the kitchen, ignoring his screams for her. "Jess, you're in the kitchen. I can still talk to you if you're in the kitchen." She shook her head and grabbed a water bottle before running out of the front door.

"What was that about?" Schmidt asked with annoyance as he flipped his omelette.

"Schmidtty, I would love to answer that, but first you need to answer me: What the hell are you wearing?" Nick asked.

Schmidt turned from the pan, spatula still in hand. A small smile spread across his face as he waved his hands (and spatula) over his body, which was covered in a pink bathrobe, much like the one Jess was wearing last night. "This is my after-sex robe. Because I had sex last night. Sex with Holly." He returned his attention back to the omelette, but the smile didn't falter from his face.

"Where did you get it?"

"Where did I get what?"

"What do you think I'm asking about, Schmidt?"

"My spatula? My sex appeal? This mole that magically appeared on my collarbone? You have to be more specific, Nick."

"The bathrobe, man. Where did you get the bathrobe?" Nick asked, pure annoyance in his voice.

"Jess was going to throw it away. Normally, I wouldn't touch another person's dirty laundry with a ten-foot pole. Probably not with a twenty-foot pole either. But I always admired this bathrobe and wondered if it was as airy as it looked. Spoiler alert: It is. Perfect morning-after bathrobe."

Nick didn't say anything, he didn't know what to say. Obviously Jess had been throwing it out because of him. Because he had kissed her while she was wearing it and now she didn't want anything to do with it. Probably not with him either. "If you'll excuse me, I'm just going to go back to my room and dig into my secret stash of scotch back there." He nodded his head and started walking back to his bedroom.

"Come on, Nick! It's not that gross!" Schmidt yelled after him, but Nick ignored him. He just walked back to his room and closed the door behind him.

He went onto the top shelf of his closet and grabbed a bottle of scotch, opening it and chugging a little. "Hey man." He looked up and saw Winston in his doorway. He walked over to Nick and slid down the wall to sit with him. "What's going on?"

Nick shrugged his shoulders and took another sip of his scotch. "You kissed her, didn't you?" The silence was the only answer he needed. "Well, it had to happen eventually. She was bound to be with one of us. I always knew it would be you."

Nick chugged a little more until he was satisfied with his state: Not drunk, but not sober. A little bit more than tipsy. He didn't bother to cap the bottle, though, knowing that today was reserved for drinking. "Problem is she's not with me. Doesn't want to be."

"How do you know that?" Winston asked, looking at his friend. "Have you talked to her about it?"

"I've tried, Winston! She literally ran away from me." He thought about that moment again, and took another sip. "And Schmidt's wearing her bathrobe. The bathrobe she was wearing when we kissed. I think that says just about everything."

Winston nodded. "Look man, you know Jess, we both know her pretty damn well. You aren't just some random guy to her; you're her best friend. She's bound to freak out a little bit, just give her time." He gave Nick a small pat on the back before standing up. "You going to be be okay?"

"Yeah, I've got all the company in the world." Nick said, holding up his bottle of booze. Winston gave him a sad smile before nodding, and walking out.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

About 20 minutes and half a bottle of scotch later, Nick was drunk, to say the least. _Well_, he thought,_ it's 7 o'clock somewhere, or whatever that saying is. I'm a bartender, I should know this._

He grabbed his phone and dialed number 3 on his speed dial. Jess. His drunk self prayed for voice mail, so that he could say what he wanted without being interrupted. He smiled when he heard _This is Jess, leave your message after the sound of the little truck backing up! _

"Yeah, Jessica. Jessica Day, such a pretty name. I think we should talk about that kiss..."

**Should I continue?! I plan on making this only a few chapters, if you guys like it, I'll write more!**

**Also, forgot to mention this at the top, but I obviously do not own New Girl in any way! Unfortunately...**


End file.
